As we approach the festive Christmas season, a tweet from Jennifer Massey, the former Director of Student Life at Memorial University, resurfaces in memory. In 2017, Massey, a self-described “scholar-practitioner,” asked how those who do not celebrate Christmas or been impacted negatively by Christianity feel when student affairs staff decorate a Christmas tree in their office, sponsor a Christmas concert or identify the break between semesters as Christmas vacation.
Massey decided to prohibit anything Christmas in the offices under the student life portfolio and instead decided to celebrate the different seasons of the year, including Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. Even a small tree on a desk was strictly prohibited during Massey’s tenure as the Director of Student Life.
What do you think? Should Memorial University ban Christmas?
Matt Barter is a fourth-year student in the Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty at Memorial University of Newfoundland, majoring in Political Science with a minor in Sociology. He enjoys reading thought-provoking articles, walks in nature, and volunteering in the community.
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